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this incident has come from me

2 Chronicles 11:1-23

2 Chronicles 11:1 When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mobilized the house of Judah and Benjamin — one hundred eighty thousand fit young soldiers — to fight against Israel to restore the reign to Rehoboam.
2 Chronicles 11:2 But the word of Yahveh came to Shemaiah, the man of God:
2 Chronicles 11:3 “Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon, king of Judah, to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people:
2 Chronicles 11:4: ‘This is what Yahveh says: You are not to march up and fight against your brothers. Each of you return home, for this incident has come from me.'” So, they listened to what Yahveh said and turned back from going against Jeroboam.
2 Chronicles 11:5 Rehoboam stayed in Jerusalem, and he fortified cities in Judah.
2 Chronicles 11:6 He built up Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa,
2 Chronicles 11:7 Beth-zur, Soco, Adullam,
2 Chronicles 11:8 Gath, Mareshah, Ziph,
2 Chronicles 11:9 Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah,
2 Chronicles 11:10 Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron, which are fortified cities in Judah and in Benjamin.
2 Chronicles 11:11 He strengthened their fortifications and put leaders in them with supplies of food, oil, and wine.
2 Chronicles 11:12 He also put large shields and spears in each and every city to make them very strong. So Judah and Benjamin were his.
2 Chronicles 11:13 The priests and Levites from all their regions throughout Israel took their stand with Rehoboam,
2 Chronicles 11:14 for the Levites left their pasturelands and their possessions and went to Judah and Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons refused to let them serve as priests of Yahveh.
2 Chronicles 11:15 Jeroboam appointed his own priests for the high places, the goat-demons, and the golden calves he had made.
2 Chronicles 11:16 Those from every tribe of Israel who had determined in their hearts to seek Yahveh their God followed the Levites to Jerusalem to sacrifice to Yahveh, the God of their ancestors.
2 Chronicles 11:17 So they strengthened the kingdom of Judah and supported Rehoboam son of Solomon for three years, because they walked in the ways of David and Solomon for three years.
2 Chronicles 11:18 Rehoboam married Mahalath, daughter of David’s son Jerimoth and of Abihail daughter of Jesse’s son Eliab.
2 Chronicles 11:19 She bore sons to him: Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham.
2 Chronicles 11:20 After her, he married Maacah daughter of Absalom. She bore Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith to him.
2 Chronicles 11:21 Rehoboam loved Maacah, daughter of Absalom, more than all his wives and concubines. He acquired eighteen wives and sixty concubines and was the father of twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters.
2 Chronicles 11:22 Rehoboam appointed Abijah, son of Maacah, as chief, leader among his brothers, intending to make him king.
2 Chronicles 11:23 Rehoboam also showed discernment by dispersing some of his sons to all the regions of Judah and Benjamin and to all the fortified cities. He gave them plenty of provisions and sought many wives for them.

this incident has come from me

God told Rehoboam not to engage in battle against his relatives because “this incident has come from me.” The rebellion, the division, all of it was the working out of God’s ultimate plan. Often or tendency is to react to what is going on around us, and God wants us to concentrate of living lives of integrity amidst the turmoil. He has control over the circumstances that we think need to be changed. He is more concerned that we change.

LORD, give us the courage to trust you, even when things do not change the way we want.